What is the Berne Convention Implementation Act?

The Berne Convention Implementation Act is a federal law that was enacted in 1988 to make the United States compliant with international copyright law. The law is named after the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, which was established in 1886 in Bern, Switzerland. This international treaty established a minimum level of copyright protection for authors and artists from countries that are signatories. Under the Berne Convention Implementation Act, any work that has been created and published in a country that is a signatory to the Berne Convention is automatically copyrighted in the United States. This means that the author of the work does not need to take any action to secure copyright protection. Copyright protection lasts for the life of the author plus 70 years. In Wisconsin, the Berne Convention Implementation Act is enforced by the State Department of Justice and the United States Copyright Office. It is important to note that this law does not replace U.S. copyright law. The Berne Convention Implementation Act simply provides an extra layer of protection for authors and artists by making sure that their work is automatically protected outside of the United States.

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What is the Berne Convention Implementation Act?

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